WASHINGTON

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced on Friday the appointment of Maria Angela Holguin Cuellar as his personal envoy on Cyprus.

"The Secretary-General has asked Ms. Holguin to assume a good offices role on his behalf to search for common ground on the way forward and to advise him on the Cyprus issue," a UN statement read.

Holguin served as minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia between 2010-2018.

Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the UN to achieve a comprehensive settlement.